Welcome back to Round 2 of our new Sunday conversation of what we saw the previous Saturday and the impact it had on the college football world. This week, we stuck to the two in-state SEC powers who had interesting second dates.

Opening day was idealistic. It was about reassurance, maybe, the offseason anxiety wasn’t warranted at Alabama and Auburn.

We discussed that dynamic in this space a week ago while noting there was only so much that could be learned by whipping Middle Tennessee State and UMass, respectively.

Week 2 showed us the beauty pageant was over.

Ugly isn’t strong enough to describe what we saw in the sequels — Texas handing Alabama its worst home loss in nearly 20 years and Auburn’s rock-fight win at Cal.

Where they looked polished against the patsies, the jagged edges were exposed in distinctive fashions and with clearly contrasting results.

It’s fair to say we learned more about both in Round 2 when facing considerably different challenges.

Way after dark

For Auburn, a 14-10 win over the Golden Bears brought back memories of the 3-2 fever dream of a 2008 win over Mississippi State. This wasn’t the offensive explosion from the 59-14 cakewalk of a week earlier, nor was this a Cal program built on defense. The hosts were 111th in total defense a year ago which allowed the 79th-most points.

A week earlier, North Texas managed 21 points but the silver lining was the other side of the ball. Cal ran up 58 in that win over the Mean Green before finding the end zone just once against the Tigers. The 273-230 yardage edge for the Golden Bears were throwback numbers to a different era — long before Hugh Freeze began working his mojo at the college level.

RELATED: Three takeaways from Auburn’s adversity-filled 14-10 win over Cal on the road

Like in Alabama’s loss, the numbers only got more interesting the deeper you dove.

ESPN’s Bill Barnwell pointed out Auburn became only the second team since 2018 to turn the ball over four times while recording fewer than 15 first downs and win the game. Auburn pulled that miracle, making teams with those numbers 2-65 over that span.

Of the Tigers’ two touchdown drives, one was a 17-yarder following a Cal turnover while the game-winner was a reason for hope. Trailing 10-7 for almost two full quarters, Auburn rolled off a 10-play, 69-yard march with deadline approaching and the clock ticking down. Payton Thorne completed all four passes on the drive, beginning with a 28-yarder to Jay Fair on third-and-17 and ending with the five-yard touchdown to Rivaldo Fairweather.

The transfer-to-transfer game-winner ended Thorne’s stat line at 9-for-14 passing with 94 yards, two scores and one interception.

RELATED: One way to describe Auburn’s 14-10 win over Cal? Wildly impressive, all things considered

Even more fascinating, the 230 total yards weren’t the fewest in an Auburn win this decade. A year ago, perhaps one of the ugliest SEC games since 3-2 ended with the Tigers surviving 17-14 over Missouri despite gaining just 217 yards. Unlike that one, brighter days are ahead. Saturday’s road win in the carcass of the Pac-12 felt more like a gutsy tight-wire act than the fact both teams couldn’t mathematically lose the same game.

We learned Auburn’s offense needs work, defense travels and they have some heart.

As the sun set

Meanwhile …

In Tuscaloosa … the mood was far more solemn in the wake of Texas’ primetime bid to end an era. The chronological distance between this Crimson Tide’s run of dominance and the 34-24 loss to the Longhorns is widening.

It’s part Alabama regressing to the mean and part other powers awakening from a slumber.

I keep coming back to a thought heard on ESPN Radio on the drive over to Tuscaloosa. An NFL draft analyst said Alabama didn’t have a receiver or quarterback who would be a starter at Texas.

Goodman: Is the dynasty over for Nick Saban’s Alabama?

Almost instinctively, that sounded a bit over the top. But then I became that Alonzo Mourning meme, going from confused to agreement. Nothing that followed Saturday night changed my mind, rather it proved it. The Longhorns assembled a top-tier receiver room with a few five-star QBs to deliver the ball.

Quinn Ewers exposed continued issues in Alabama’s secondary with six completions of 30-plus yards. That included touchdowns of 44 and 39 yards to two different receivers and a 50-yarder to set up another score to a third. The first, a moon scraper to Xavier Worthy set the tone for what would be a wild night. Each home run shot came from relatively clean pockets as every trick in the Alabama pass-rush playbook failed to produce a sack while yielding just three pressures.

These numbers and the final score, however, put lipstick on what was otherwise a pig of a game. Let’s not forget Texas was white-knuckling a 13-9 lead until the end of the third quarter. Where there was one touchdown scored in the first 44 minutes, the two combined for five in the final 16.

Casagrande: Texas saved Alabama’s greatest indignity for last

Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe established himself as a true three-outcome passer on Saturday night. Like a baseball hitter who only strikes out, walks or homers, Milroe had an all-or-nothing night. That was never more evident than a two-pass span in the fourth quarter. Having thrown two straight incompletions to end a string of six-straight strikes, Milroe uncorked a beauty of a 49-yard touchdown. It dropped right in the bucket for Jermaine Burton and Alabama’s streak of two straight touchdowns to Burton called back by penalty ended.

The Crimson Tide had its first lead just 14 seconds before the fourth quarter and another escape job appeared possible.

Part II of that two-installment sample size supplied another of the true outcomes. His very next throw, one that followed Texas’ go-ahead score, was bad enough that Texas safety Jerrin Thompson appeared to take two steps on his return before even securing the interception. Texas would score one play later, and though Alabama would respond with another touchdown, the night was effectively over.

RELATED: Alabama-Texas featured ‘haymakers,’ but Longhorns won with more big plays

The 12-play, 34-yard Texas drive that sapped the final 7:14 off the clock was the final insult. After Texas assaulted Alabama through the air, it finished the deed with a physical statement that was supposed to be the Crimson Tide’s identity.

Ultimately, it was a fate similar to Alabama’s 2022 losses to Tennessee and LSU. Only this time it never really felt like Alabama had the talent or scheme to outfox Texas and Sarkisian.

We learned gravity comes for us all, even Nick Saban and Alabama.

Quick hits

Remember Arch Manning? For all the talk of the Alabama-Texas recruiting battle over the LeBron James of football prospects, his name wasn’t a big part of the conversation entering this one. The true freshman passer sits third on the depth chart having never left the bench in the season-opening win over Rice. Manning was on the sideline Saturday and was full horns up in the postgame playing of The Eyes of Texas.

About the band: Speaking of the Texas marching band, Alabama stuck to the promise to return the favor when UT banished Tide fans to the upper deck last year in Austin. And while hundreds if not thousands of Texas fans bought lower bowl seats in the traditional visitor section, the abbreviated version of the band was stuck in the top corner of the north end zone upper deck. Still, they were loud enough to be heard on the field for the postgame fight song.

Reunion time: The Texas/Alabama crossover extended well beyond Steve Sarkisian at the top of the Longhorn pyramid. Of his 10 on-field assistants, four previously coached at Alabama. Offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Kyle Flood’s son, Kyle Flood Jr., is a reserve linebacker who remained at Alabama when his dad moved on to Texas. Jeff Banks, Bo Davis and AJ Milwee also previously worked in Tuscaloosa.

On the other side, former Texas head coach Charlie Strong is in his first year on a second stint as an Alabama analyst. He greeted a few old friends during the postgame handshakes including Matthew McConaughey on his way to the Tide locker room.

I was able to catch up for a brief second with another Alabama-Texas crossover. Former Tide linebacker Nico Johnson (2009-12), now a Texas analyst, stood near midfield and watched the Longhorns sing the Eyes of Texas. It was clear emotions were complex standing on the field that was once home while wearing the gear of the conquering rival.

Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.